Iraq's shifting memory on the 38th anniversary of the August 8 ceasefire

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq's former regime marked August 8, 1988, as "Great Victory Day" after an eight-year war with Iran, with a ceasefire taking effect on August 20. After 2003, the official narrative changed: December 10 was adopted as the state's "Victory Day" to commemorate the defeat of ISIS, and August 8 was dropped from official commemorations. Akil al-Redaini, a member of Parliament's Education Commission and spokesman for the Nasr Alliance led by former Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, said the war had exhausted Iran and Iraq on behalf of the United States and Israel, and that a victory celebration was therefore inappropriate. Political analyst Ahmed Yusuf said society remains deeply divided over the meaning of the war. Iraq and Iran became political, economic and security partners after 2003, with Iran supporting Iraq against ISIS in 2014 through the Popular Mobilization Forces. Yet bilateral trade fell 55% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025. Reuters reported that Iran's Revolutionary Guard has set up small secret cells in Iraq to carry out drone attacks against Gulf states. Baghdad has set a September 30, 2026 deadline to bring weapons under state control, a timeframe that coincides with the end of the international coalition mission.